Executive Power
Trump's Use of the Alien Enemies Act Violates Madison's View of Presidential Power
Alleged criminal aliens may face legal punishment. But only after receiving due process of law.
The Hidden Politics of Whiskey Prices
Donald Trump is determined to make everything from Canadian whiskey to Mexican avocados more expensive. Can anyone stop him?
Lee Kovarsky on the Venue Issue in the Alien Enemies Act Case
A leading expert on habeas corpus explains why the Trump Administration is wrong to claim the case must be heard in Texas, rather than Washington, DC.
DC Circuit Upholds District Court Order Blocking Deportations Under The Alien Enemies Act
The 2-1 ruling is procedural, but strongly suggests the majority judges also reject the Trump administration's position on the merits.
Federal Court Rules Migrants Have Right to Hearing to Challenge Alien Enemies Act Deportations
Judge Boasberg ruled the migrants are entitled to due process in determing whether they really are "alien enemies" covered by the Act.
Trump's Attack on the Courts Channels the Worst of Theodore Roosevelt
An unconstitutional act is still unconstitutional even if lots of people support it.
Trump and Congress Have a Right and a Duty To Kill the Department of Education
The feds have no constitutional authorization to meddle in education.
Trump's Reading of the Alien Enemies Act Defies the Usual Meaning of Its Terms
To justify the immediate deportation of suspected Venezuelan gang members, the president is invoking a rarely used statute that does not seem to apply in this context.
Two Audio Interviews About the Alien Enemies Act Litigation
Links to audios of a Cato Institute podcast and an interview with ABC News (Australia).
National Constitution Center Podcast on the Alien Enemies Act and Mahmoud Khalil Immigration Cases [Updated]
The participants were Adam Cox (NYU) and myself.
Trump's Judge Bashing Provokes a Rebuke From Chief Justice John Roberts (Again)
"Impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision," Roberts noted after Trump said federal judges who impede his agenda should be fired.
Trump Fires Democratic FTC Commissioners
The removals challenge Humphrey’s Executor, a Supreme Court precedent that protects independent agency officials from political firings.
President Trump Targets Humphrey's Executor Directly
President Trump acts to remove two Democratic commissioners from the Federal Trade Commission. Litigation is likely.
'We Are Not Stopping'
Plus: Texas midwife arrested for violating abortion ban, JFK files, Gaza bombings, astronauts finally rescued, and more...
Trump Administration Likely Violated Court Order in Alien Enemies Act Case
They used the Act to deport some 137 Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador even after a federal court issued a temporary restraining order blocking such action.
In Trump's Revenge Fantasy, Biden Did Not Actually Pardon Members of the January 6 Committee
The president says those legislators are "subject to investigation at the highest level," notwithstanding their pardons and the Speech or Debate Clause.
Trump's Awful Decision to Gut Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
Trump is destroying a valuable source of American "soft power" and an inspiration to people suffering under authoritarian regimes.
Trump Invokes Alien Enemies Act as Tool for Deportation - Federal Court Issues Temporary Restraining Order Against it [Updated]
If courts allow Trump to get away with using the Act in peacetime, it would set a dangerous precedent.
My US News and World Report Article on Trump's Dictatorial Immigration Power Grabs
The article is coauthored with Cato Institute scholar David Bier.
Congress Just Made It Harder for Congress To Block Trump's Tariffs
The cowardice of Congress will continue fueling the growth of executive power.
Rachel Barkow: Did Trump and Biden Turn Pardons Into a Corrupt Joke?
Presidential pardons have become a tool of favoritism and politics.
Republicans May Regret Undermining Judicial Independence
Threats to impeach federal judges who rule against the government are a naked attack on their constitutionally crucial function.
Preserve the Mercy of Pardon Power, Even If Presidents Misuse It
While overturning sentences through courts can take years, a grant of clemency is instantaneous.
D.C. Circuit Issues Opinion Explaining Stay that Allowed for Special Counsel Dellinger's Removal
The panel did not believe the Office of Special Counsel could be distinguished from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau or Federal Housing Finance Authority.
DC Circuit Allows Removal of Special Counsel Dellinger Pending Appeal
For now, President Trump has removed Hampton Dellinger as head of the Office of Special Counsel.
DOGE Goes Deep State
A smaller government with a more powerful set of unaccountable executive officials is unlikely to be much of a win for liberty.
Trump Tests the Limits of Executive Orders
Making policy and passing laws is supposed to be difficult and should be left to the messy channels established by the Constitution.
Webinar on the Future of Humphrey's Executor and Agency Independence
A discussion of whether and when the Supreme Court might overturn Humphrey's Executor v. United States.
Perils of Unitary Executive Theory
The originalist case for a unitary executive falls apart in an era when many of the powers wielded by the executive branch were not originally supposed to be federal powers in the first place.
What the Supreme Court Said about Dellinger v. Bessent in Seila Law v. CFPB
A district court judge has concluded that President Trump cannot remove the head of the Office of Special Counsel without cause. Supreme Court review is inevitable.
Elon Musk, Who Supposedly Is Running DOGE, Is Not Officially in Charge of Anything
The presidential adviser's lack of formal authority complicates his cost-cutting mission.
The Sunny Side of Donald Trump's Power Grabs
The president is positioning himself to have much greater control over a smaller, enfeebled federal bureaucracy.
Trump Will Create 520,000 More Illegal Immigrants by Undoing Haitians' Protected Status
The move effectively retcons J.D. Vance's claim that legal Haitian immigrants were actually here illegally.
Has the Imperial Presidency Arrived?
There's little question that Trump is taking the concept of the imperial presidency to its apogee.
Trump Has Good Reason To Complain About Limits on His Ability To Fire Executive Officers
His position is grounded in concerns about the separation of powers that presidents of both major parties have raised for many years.
The New Captain America Film Has Important Lessons for Trump and Biden Stans
In Captain America: Brave New World, a power-hungry president makes reckless choices and withholds vital information—but even he looks competent compared to Biden and Trump.
Presidents Should Not Ignore Court Rulings
Vice President J.D. Vance believes presidents can ignore the courts in some situations. Are we heading for a constitutional crisis?
Two Injunctions Against Trump's Citizenship Decree Expose the Weakness of His Arguments
Federal judges in Washington and Maryland say the president's attack on birthright citizenship flouts the 14th Amendment and 127 years of judicial precedent.
Trump Is Flat-Out Lying About the 60 Minutes Interview With Harris
The full transcript shows the president's complaints about the editing of the interview are not just wildly hyperbolic and legally groundless. They are demonstrably false.
Challenge Trump's Tariffs Under the Nondelegation and Major Questions Doctrines
Recent Supreme Court precedent suggests such challenges might prevail, though success is not guaranteed.
Why Is Paramount So Keen To Settle Trump's Laughable Lawsuit Against CBS?
The company is worried that the president's complaints about a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris could block a pending merger.
Biden's Record-Breaking Regulatory Run
In four years, Biden issued regulations costing an estimated $1.8 trillion, by far the highest total in American history.
Is Humphrey's Executor in the Crosshairs?
Firing members of "independent" agencies would seem to set up a direct challenge to a longstanding precedent.
Was It Legal for Trump to Fire Seventeen Inspectors General Without Notice?
Jack Goldsmith offers his analysis.
Trump's Citizenship Decree Signals His Willingness To Flout the Constitution
The executive order contradicts the 14th Amendment and 127 years of judicial precedent.
My New Just Security Article On Trump's "Invasion" Executive Order and its Dangerous Implications
The article explains why the order is unconstitutional and why letting it stand would be very dangerous, including for the civil liberties of US citizens.
Trump Tries To Fire Inspectors General, Likely Violating Federal Law
A law passed in 2022 requires the president to give Congress a "substantive rationale" for removing inspectors general. Trump has not done that.
